French Group LabruyèreEberlé invests in Wonderchef

Company will use the investment amount to setup manufacturing unit in India and emphasize on exclusive retail outlets.

Company eyes for 500 Cr. turnover within foreseeable future

Wonderchef, the leading Kitchen Appliances and Cookware Brand has received investment from French group Labruyere Eberlé. Founded by Ravi Saxena, an MBA from IIM Ahmedabad, andcelebrity Chef Sanjeev Kapoor, Wonderchef has grown from a start-up to a 200 crore strong brand within a few years. The Brand is known for its quality, innovation and design of products. With its unique distribution and marketing strategy, it has already become one of the leading brands of kitchenware in the country.

“We are delighted to partner with Labruyère Group in our growth story. They understand retail and kitchenware business, and also share our progressive mindset,” said Ravi Saxena, Managing Director of Wonderchef, who is also the man responsible for the creation of other iconic brands in India like Sodexo, Gloria Jeans Coffees, Fun City and MISB Bocconi business school. “This is a strategic partnership and the Group is investing upto USD 5 m.over the next 2 years in Wonderchef to support us in our growth” added Saxena.

Labruyère Group from Mâcon, France has interests in premium Wine business with vineyards in all the major regions like Burgundy, Bordeaux and Champagne region. The group is also a partner of global retail leader Carrefour, a 100 Billion dollar powerhouse. Interestingly the group has invested in India in related businesses over the last two years. It has picked up stake in the two leading wine companies Sula and Grover Zampa, as well as in Sapphire, a large Franchiseeof Pizza Hut and KFC restaurant outlets in India.

Mr. Vincent Labruyère, CEO of the French group said, “With a throbbing economy and a burgeoning consumer market, India is a strategic frontier for our group. We want to focus our investments towardsgrowing companies in consumer goodsindustry in India, and Wonderchef perfectly fits with this strategy.We intend to begin our partnership with Wonderchef on a positive note and go a long way in growing its business in India. For this, we plan to add to our investments in the Company in coming years”.

Wonderchef stands for enabling healthy cooking, a key need that Ravi Saxena and Chef Kapoor realized for the growing middle and upper middle classes of the nation. Chef Sanjeev Kapoor said, “Wonderchef is built around the passion for cooking and empowering customers to cook healthy. We are happy to partner with Labruyère Group in our journey to make a difference in health of every home in India”

Labruyère Group also ownsMathon, a leading e-commerce company in kitchenware in France. The group acquired Mathon in 2012 and turned it around from a loss making company into a profitable and thriving business. Sebastien Bouvet from family Labruyère is the architect of this turnaround and intends to lead the group’ssupport in Wonderchef. “We are eager to bring our digital media and marketing knowhow to India. I believe this would benefit Wonderchef immensely. At the same time we are eager to learn from the incredible distribution strategy of Wonderchef and apply these learnings into our operations in France”, said Sebastien.

Zurich based Private Equity fund Capvent had invested in Wonderchef in 2015. Since then the company has grown over three times within two years. Wonderchef would use the first round of investment from France for strengthening its brand via traditional and new-age media. Further investment would be used for expansion of manufacturing facilities in India.“This is just the beginning and we are targeting a 500 crore turnover within foreseeable future,” added Ravi Saxena.